Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott kneels before the game against the Los Angeles Rams

When asked what would happen if an NFL owner wished to discipline a player for protesting during the anthem, Goodell said: “I think our clubs all see this the same way – we want our players to stand, we’re going to encourage them to stand and we’re going to continue to work on these issues in the community.

“We’ll address issues – I can’t deal with hypotheticals right now, we’ll deal with those issues if they come up – but for right now, that’s our focus.”

Trump responded to Goodell’s comments by writing on Twitter: “@NFL: Too much talk, not enough action. Stand for the National Anthem.”

.@NFL: Too much talk, not enough action. Stand for the National Anthem.

Buffalo Bills players kneel during the national anthem prior to the game against the Atlanta Falcons

“And I believe our players feel that same way. They will state to you, and they have stated to everyone publicly, they are not doing this in any way to be disrespectful to the flag, but they also understand how it’s being interpreted, and we’re dealing with those underlying issues.”

Goodell said it was important that players’ concerns were recognised.

“[Our discussions] reflected our commitment to work together with our players on issues of social justice,” he said.

“I will tell you that our players are men of great character. They have a very deep understanding and tremendous knowledge of the issues that are going on in all of our communities.

“Their commitment to addressing these issues is really admirable and something that I think our owners looked at as saying ‘We want to help you support you. Those are issues that affect us. They’re our issues also. We’d like to do it together’.”